Gods & Monsters
by gublercullen
Summary: Genevieve has spent weeks being tortured by nightmares of monsters and the man with raven hair and pale skin. It's only when she finds herself alone, caught in the middle of the snap, that things start to get even stranger. She begins to wonder which she shoulder fear more - the end of the world or the green eyed man who plagues her dreams.


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One

She watched as the knife sliced eagerly through the apple, pressing just hard enough to cut between flesh and skin. A trail of the dark red peel spun out beneath her hands as she expertly moved the apple clockwise against the blade.

"I would ask what you're doing but I know better by now," A cheerful voice rung out behind her before Chloe appeared, leaning her slender frame against the kitchen worktops.  
"I'm trying to eat something that isn't fried or covered in cheese," Genevieve laughed, snipping the last of the apple peel and allowing it to fall into the water filled sink in front of her, "I didn't want apple skin stuck in my teeth."

"Oh well obviously," Chloe smirked, "Weird fact of the day, witches used to do that exact same thing?"

Genevieve frowned, taking a bite of the apple, "What?"

"They'd get a patron to peel an apple over a bowl of water, as soon as the peel fell, whatever letter it resembled was the first letter of the name of their soul mate," Chloe replied, peering into the sink at the discarded apple peel.

"You don't believe that stuff, do you?" Genevieve frowned.

Chloe shrugged, grabbing the apple from Genevieve and taking a bite, "Looks like an L to me."

Genevieve tapped her pen rhythmically against her notepad as she did her best to catalogue what felt like thousands of files in the basement storage locker of S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters. She'd started her internship with an open mind and a positive outlook – she had zero qualifications, no work experience and knew no one in New York, so the fact she'd been given a job anywhere was a miracle. But to be working in S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters? It was a dream come true. A dream she didn't really know she had until her application was accepted, considering she hadn't even been aware the organization had existed but nevertheless, she was thrilled. That didn't help the fact she was stuck working at 11pm on a Saturday night doing filing. She haphazardly threw down her notebook and collapsed into the nearby sofa, rubbing her hands over her eyes – barely taking notice of the dusting of two-day old mascara that came to lie on her cheeks.

"I am so bad at this," She sighed, leaning her head back to look up at the darkened ceiling. Before she had the chance to stop, her eyes had begun to flutter. She hadn't slept well for weeks, plagued by dreams of monsters and men hiding around dark corners. It's something she'd always had problems with, especially whenever she was under a lot of stress. Moving to New York had certainly been stressful enough to set her off on a spiral of nightmares and insomnia.

She struggled against sleep as best she could but despite her best efforts she fell into a fresh slumber and the familiar images were already flashing behind her closed eyes. She was engulfed in heat – a fire so much hotter than anything she'd ever felt before. There was a man, his coal black hair hung to his shoulders and his face was as pale as the moonlight. He was in pain, Genevieve could see it in his eyes – she recognised the monster from previous nightmares. His huge hands were wrapped around her throat, cutting off her air supply and crushing bone.

_"Genevieve," _The man spoke, the words were so detached from his lips.

_"Genevieve, wake up,"_ He repeated, only this time she was shaking, her whole body shuddering.

Genevieve leapt from the sofa only to come face to face with Chloe, her round face lit by the sunlight streaming in through the windows and her hands clasped firmly on Genevieve's shoulders.

"Did you sleep here all night?" She questioned with a confused frown.

"Um," Genevieve muttered, running a clammy hand back through her hair, "I'm not feeling…" She slowed, her eyes catching a glimmer of raven hair and pale skin disappearing around the corner.

"Gen, are you ok?" Chloe asked, her voice low and laced with concern.

"I need to go home, can you let them know I'm not feeling great," Genevieve said, forcing a smile as she stood shakily from the sofa and rushed for the exit, hopeful that she'd catch a glimpse of the man from her dream.

Genevieve moved through the groups of people with nervous intention, she was struggling to keep her head in check. There was a deep anxiety running through her veins and causing a pulsing in her ears. A deafening crash sounded from behind her and she spun to search for the noise, pedestrians started to run, turning the sidewalk into a mass of bodies struggling to escape the mystery threat. She caught sight of people screaming, some running whilst others were planted firmly where they were stood as if mesmerized. Clouds of dark dust faded into the passing breeze, carrying with it the sound of car alarms and the colliding bumpers.

"What the hell," Genevieve muttered as she watched chaos play out before her. A helicopter spun wildly out of control in the distance, crashing into a building and bursting into flames. Her instincts reacted and she held her arms out in front of her to shield herself. At that moment a man rushed past, pushing her to the ground, a sharp pain shot up her arm and she turned to yell at the culprit – only to see something incredible. Inch by inch he was disintegrating, disappearing with the wind. And it wasn't just him.


End file.
